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What if I told you there was a simple way to kick start your business, where you spend less money, and annoy less people? Are you interested? Would it sound like magic? To me it would. But, it’s not magic. It is just marketing 101 stuff. But, this marketing 101 stuff so so so many people get wrong.

Yea you can ignore this marketing 101 mumbo jumbo. And instead hit the streets, start the cold calling and push your ‘ultimate 10% off offer’. But, how far would that get you? Not very far. And it would probably annoy.

But, as a wise old man once said to me ‘I don’t take shortcuts, because they take to long’. Let us, you and me, be honest, no short cuts, and answers these 7 simple marketing 101 question.

1) Who is Your Target Market?

Marketing is just a word for communicating what we do and how we help.

If you say ‘everyone’ is your target market you need to start over! Seriously! Why? Because a) not everyone wants your product and, b) Addressing everybody is not practical. Not enough money in the world nor hours in the day. Just. Not. Possible.

Do this instead. Choose a slice of the market, a niche, that is already served, enter it, then position yourself differently.

Yes, entering a market with competition sounds counterintuitive. The premises is sound. If a niche has competition then people are buying. If people are buying then profit is being made. All you have to do is position yourself differently from the others and you will attract your audience.

The alternative is a finding a niche without competition, the classic gap in the market, and convince people who are not buying to buy. That is way, way more difficult than positioning yourself differently in a profitable market.

Another niche is to sell to (and lead) a group which you are a member of. The premises is people will buy from you, because you are one of them. Think of this as the insider helping insiders, a tribe if you will.

Tribes is not new, Seth Godin, wrote a book, about it ‘Tribes’. People gravitate into groups around a leader or ideas. Use your tribe to your marketing advantage. Rally like-minded people around your product, your idea, or your cause.

2) HOW will this Niche Become Aware of What you Have?

In marketing parlance this is the promotional part of the 4 P’s. Promotion suggest advertising and pushing. And no one likes be sold to.

How will your Tribe know about your products? If your niche is your tribe of like-minded people, then talk with them as normal and show what you have. Selling will take care of itself.

If your niche has competitors, assess their tactics, then do one better and market from your own angle.

Remember all your online business emanates from your home base — your website.

Yes, you can interrupt people with advertising, but, chances are you’ll get ignored if you don’t have a compelling story to tell them. Leading us to number 3.

3) WHAT Story are you Telling, Living, or Spreading?

The most engaging and memorable marketing is marketing told through stories. Big brands do this expertly in 30sec TV ads. The ads show how lives are transformed, get better, or are improved.

Yes, a story. But, why stories? Why not just ‘here’s our features and benefits buy from us’?

Yet, the best story is the how peoples lives are transformed, improved or are better.

Stories are great only if they connect with existing beliefs and views people have.

4) Does Your Story Resonate With their Worldview?

What does your audience believe? What do they want? What are their fears?

Marketing Personas is a one powerful tool in your toolbox helping you focus your messaging to a subset of your market. Better than using marketing personas, is identifying prospects worldview.

A worldview is how people view their world. E.g. what should we do next? What is right or wrong? How should we reach our goals?

Tapping into the worldview of your audience focuses your messaging and builds a deeper bond with people.

Apple did this with their Think Differently campaign. The rallied cry called people:

…the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the trouble makers, the round pegs for square holes, the ones who see differently…

And it worked expertly. It worked because people identified themselves in this campaign. And we all identify with being a rebel at some stage in our lives, or being a trouble maker, and we all fell the system, puts round pegs into square holes.

Find the worldview your audience associates with and foster it.

Take, for example, two families. Both sets are married, home owners, have 2 teenage kids. One a VW family, the other a Ford family. Both sets work full time. One is a Apple product family and the other Android and Windows family.

Would the words and images in your marketing be the same for each family? Are the worldviews the same? No, probably not. If you ignore their worldview you’ll speak the wrong language and annoy people you want to attract and waste your money.

5) WHERE is the Fear that Prevents Action?

For us, as owners and marketeers, action is a signup/registration, or phone call or a sale. So identify the fear preventing our prospects from taking action?

Is the fear the basic I must ‘Know you, like you, trust you’, before I buy from you? Does your website ooze confidence (trust). Is social proof is missing – testimonials and social shares. Or maybe the fear is internal. Or maybe people want your product, but, just not today.

Figure out what fear is holding people from opening up their wallet and giving your their cash.

6) WHEN do you Expect People to Take Action?

If your answer is I want action ‘now’, then ask what is keeping people from saying, ‘no, I’ll buy later’. Because deferring decisions to later is safer and easier.

As owners want people action now, so figure out and fix, that part of your marketing funnel ‘allowing’ people to say I’ll take action ‘later’.

7) WHY Would People Do Business With You?

Seldom is the features and benefits of your product stopping the sale.

So, ask yourself, why would people do business with me? Is it your charm, your good looks, your humour? Maybe it’s your customer service? Or it’s the hand written thank you card after an order? Or a voucher for a coffee?

Further, what will your customers tell their friends about you? And if you ask your customers – ‘why did you do business with me?’ Will you be pleased with the answer?

And what would happen if take their answer and lead your marketing the it? As we know customers speaking about you (earned media) is 100x more powerful then you talking about you.

Kick Start your Marketing

To kick start your business and annoy less people — answer the 7 question. And like magic you will attract the right people, repel the wrong people, spend less money and be massively ahead of your competition.

Wow. That sounds like cheating.

Want to cheat more? Download for FREE this Worksheet, it walks you through the 7 question to Market your business and Annoy Less People.